5 Favorite Horror Video Game Box Covers

1. Alone in the Dark (PC)

A classic game that defined the tenets of survival horror for years – static camera angles, limited resources, poor fighting abilities, puzzles, and a tank-like control system – has a suitably classy cover that oozes Lovecraft.

A Japanese-only NES release from 1989, Sweet Home was overseen by director Kiyoshi Kurosawa, director of the Sweet Home film from which this was adapted. Often cited as the first true survival horror game and the direct ancestor of Resident Evil, which was intended initially as a remake of Sweet Home. Sure: it’s just a tinted, mirrored image of the film poster, but what a poster!

4. It Came from the Desert (Amiga)

Cinemaware’s Amiga classic of sci fi horror came wrapped in this gloriously cover straight out of a 50s moviehouse. The game also saw release as a campy full motion video game for the TurboGrafx 16 CD drive, but the original is the real classic – a wonderful homage to 50s giant mutant monster films (THEM!, in particular), overflowing with atmosphere and dread-inducing music.

5. Splatterhouse (TG16)

The cover for the TurboGraphx 16 release of the arcade classic Splatterhouse still rocks 26 years later. Sure, the game is simplistic today, but it’s still filled with beautiful backgrounds and awesome creatures.

It’s probably a sign of a troubled childhood that I owned all of these, including an import copy of Sweet Home. Too bad I can’t read Japanese. XD But what about the box art for Fatal Frame III or Kuon Those still disturb me to this day…